The Environment
How much do you care about your environment? As Muslims we must give the rights to not just those around us but to our environment as a whole.
Yesterday at my mother in law’s house we were watching Get Fresh with Sara Snow on the Discovery Health Channel. After watching it, I learned something new that I wanted to share with those who care about their environment (and every Muslim should care as it is our responsibility).
Did you know that Plastic bags are non-degradable and are responsible for the death of over 100,00 marine animals each year due to entanglement? You can read this from wikipedia. They truly have an effect on our environment.This small topic on plastic bags leads to a more important topic that every Muslim should be aware of… and that is Global Warming. If you don’t like reading, you may try watching An Inconvenient Truth and do your part on conservation.So one step to taking care of our environment can be that instead of using plastic bags we can invest in a cool resuable grocery bag like the one above. Other cool styles can be found here.
We should be first in line in these matters and know that even if our efforts don’t change ‘much’ around us, we still will get rewarded by Allaah if done for His sake.
Michael Stephen wrote,
Plastic bags are now available which will degrade and disappear in a few months, leaving no harmful residues on land or at sea. They are made from oxo-biodegradable plastic, which can be made at very little extra cost, with the same machinery and workforce as conventional plastic. They can be recycled or composted, and do not emit methane.
Link | February 24th, 2007 at 4:51 am
Umm Layth wrote,
Okay, I will have to read on that. I do appreciate that you shared that but I have a question. Are these oxo-biodegradable plastic bags very common now?
Link | February 24th, 2007 at 6:12 pm
Rain wrote,
Salaams~
Those bags are somewhat common here in the US… They “feel” a little different than regular ones. I experiemented with one a couple of years back so I would be able to tell the difference (I buried it in my flower bed). Keep in mind that they can’t be recycled with “regular” plastic bags… they have to be separated out. Also, you can usually buy canvas tote bags at the thrift store.
Link | March 6th, 2007 at 3:20 am
Editor wrote,
as-salamu ‘alaykum
I like this post! Muslims are generally negligent of the environmental issues that surround them. When conservation is an aspect found in Islam as well. At the very basic, we’re told to be mindful of our water usage for wudhu’. This advice you’d think is apt especially in desert conditions. But look at the global situation now. Water is fast becoming a serious issue.
Anyway, yeah, once, my mum freaked out when she discovered the plastic bags she keeps (to be used for rubbish disposal) were all broken up. She suspected a rat and spent the whole day clearing out the storage drawers. But at the end of the day, she was like oh, these are biodegradable bags. Lol, poor thing.
Link | March 12th, 2007 at 5:13 am
AnonyMouse wrote,
As-salaamu ‘alaikum wa rahmatullaahi wa barakaatu,
Aha, glad that I’m not alone! I’m always bugging my parents to be more environmentally-friendly… they still haven’t given up their plastic bags (but we do use them over and over and over again…), but I think I’m making progress with other stuff, like conserving energy and stuff, lol :P
-Mouse
Link | March 13th, 2007 at 7:59 pm